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The Placette Audio Remote Volume Control is simplicity itself: a paperback-sized black box with one set of unbalanced inputs and outputs, a toggle switch (and a remote) to change the level, and a row of LEDs that light up to indicate the relative volume level. The signal path, too, is simple, with only a stepped attenuator between input and output. But this is not just any attenuator—it's a 125-step model built entirely with super-premium Vishay S-102 foil resistors.

The first time I heard an Audio Note preamp was seven or eight years ago, when I sampled their entry-level M1—a refreshingly musical thing that brought the same kind of color and drama to preamplification that Audio Note's more famous products brought to the driving of speakers. And the M1 cost only $1250 at the time, with phono stage. (Newcomers, please don't wince: That's awfully cheap for what it was.)

High-end audio has always been a tricky business, and in recent years it's become more so. Home theater is pulling in one direction, and MP3, iPods, and the Internet are pulling in another. And customer expectations—not just of sound quality, but also of usability and integration into their space and lives—are spiraling upward. The companies that are thriving amid these pressures seem to have adopted one of two strategies: either they focus more narrowly and try to convince the world to accept their vision, or they evolve their products in an attempt to anticipate the market.

TrueSound Lounge: Headphone giant <A HREF="www.sennheiserusa.com">Sennheiser</A&gt; has opened an online music destination, the Sennheiser <A HREF="http://www.truesoundlounge.com">"TrueSound
Lounge</A>", providing web-surfers an entertaining selection of new music from
company-supported emerging artists like Sugarcult and Jody Whitesides. The site also provides "fun, quick-witted web-video shorts from top commercial filmmakers and producers, fruits of the Sennheiser Invitational Film Project," and "concise info on Sennheiser's unequalled selection of personal listening products," according to a recent announcement.

The <A HREF="http://www.riaa.org">RIAA</A&gt; foresees that digital audio broadcasting (DAB) will represent a fundamental change in the radio industry. "It is not just a means of offering higher quality broadcast sound. DAB could transform radio into a vehicle for the distribution of huge amounts of information in digital form, including recorded music," says the trade organization. As a result, the group is supporting regulatory restraints on digital audio broadcasting (DAB) in reaction to a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Notice of Inquiry (NOI) regarding DAB content control.

On June 16, the US <A HREF="http://www.cpsc.gov">Consumer Product Safety Commission</A> (CPSC) announced a product recall in voluntary cooperation with equipment manufacturer and distributor <A HREF="http://www.linn.co.uk/">Linn</A&gt;. The notice asks that consumers stop using the recalled products immediately, unless otherwise instructed.

In his review of the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/loudspeakerreviews/604velodyne">Velodyne Digital Drive DD-18 powered subwoofer</A>, Larry Greenhill comments, "When I've tested other 'breakthrough' subwoofers, I've been disappointed. All the convenient fine-tuning in the world won't matter if I end up with the same nasty old room modes and woofer bloat." But as LG discovers, the DD-18 is indeed different.